


Marked

by orphan_account



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Kim fam, M/M, Minor SeKai, minor chansoo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-03
Updated: 2017-09-03
Packaged: 2018-12-23 06:40:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,158
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11984274
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: If a girl is born with a star on her wrist, she is destined to marry a prince, and Luhan who is a boy, is born with a star on his wrist.





	Marked

**Author's Note:**

> So I'm incredibly late. Sorrz. School work and stuff (Also the fact that I re-wrote it)
> 
> Low key Anastasia inspired.

The Red Force attacks that day, when they’re totally defenseless, the night of the Ball. They break into the castle with torches and knifes, slaughtering the servants as they stride towards the Ball room.  Sehun and Yixing see this, hidden in a cupboard inside of the kitchen, as they hear the sound of footsteps fading away deeper into the castle’s walls.

“The Royal family” Yixing, barely ten, whispers in worry. They had to save the Kim family.

It’s luck. It’s completely luck, that by Sehun always sneaking to play with the youngest prince, Jongin, they get to know about the secret passage in the prince’s room. So, they sneak into the Ball room from the servant’s entry.

\-----

The Kim Kingdom gets destroyed, the Red Force burning the castle to the ground after they ruthlessly kill the King and the Queen in front of all the nobles in the room. The two boys only succeed to get the four sons of the Kim family, the heirs to the throne.

The kids run, run as fast as they can into Jongin’s room, Minseok carrying his youngest brother in his arms while Junmyeon dragged Jongdae along, Sehun and Yixing following from behind. They manage to get into the passage hidden behind Jongin’s wardrobe, pushing the furniture to the side. When they get outside, they’re instantly hit with the harsh winter air. The youngest brother finally cries, screaming his parent’s names, wetting his brother’s attire. Jongdae trembles, rubbing his eyes furiously while Junmyeon holds his hand tighter than before.

It’s as they cross the frozen river, to get to the other side as quickly as possible, when they see red soldiers following them from behind. Minseok is utterly and absolutely terrified. He’s the oldest amongst his brothers, but he’s still just a kid. The soldiers were going to catch them, he had to do something. In a hurry, he hands Jongin to Junmyeon, but before the twelve-year old can do anything, one of the servants stops him with his arm.

“Prince Minseok, go with your brothers and follow Sehun. I’ll stay behind and buy some time”

“But-”

Yixing smiles at him, although it’s clear he’s scared. “Your life is more valuable than a peasant’s one, my lord”

“Yixing-”

“Escape with your brothers, my lord” Minseok can’t think, can’t think straight because this could be the last time he sees Yixing.

It’s Sehun that tugs him away, pulling them forward as they leave Yixing behind.

When they finally reach the other side, panting and tired, Minseok looks back. The ice of the river had broken, the soldiers falling into cold waters, but he couldn’t see Yixing anywhere. His servant was always so self-sacrificing, always getting punished on his account.

He wants to cry like his brothers, but he can’t allow himself that. Not when he has to bear with the responsibility of looking out for them, of given them strength. He can’t let Yixing’s actions go to waste. So, they keep running and running, further from the castle and towards the train station.

 

\---

 

The station’s full when they arrive, crowds of people filling the tight space. Minseok can barely breath, can barely move in between the countless bodies blocking his way, his short height a disadvantage. When they manage to get closer to the rails, he notices the train is about to set off. 

In a swift movement, he gets Jongin on board, as the train started to advance, making them have to dart towards it in desperation. Junmyeon jumps on his own and holds out his hand for Jongdae to grab, jerking him upwards and into the train safely. As Sehun runs next to him, he notices the servant’s leg is bleeding, and it’s that what makes him decide to be the last one to board.

“Help Sehun get on!” he screams, and Jongdae and Junmyeon hold the servant’s arms and pull him upwards.

“Your turn!” Junmyeon shouts, holding his hand out for Minseok to grab. Even though he’s running as fast as he can, he can barely touch Junmyeon’s fingers. The train was getting faster and faster, and he couldn’t keep up. It’s in slow motion, how his fingers slip out of his brother’s hand, little by little, until he loses his grip completely, stumbling and falling to the ground, his head hitting the platform, blacking out.

\-----

Luhan doesn’t know why he has that mark on his right wrist. At first, he didn’t mind it, his mother even told him it was beautiful, and he agreed, his birth mark was beautiful. 

But then he learns from the other kids that his birthmark wasn’t exactly a birth mark, and starts to get conscious about it. “That mark is for girls only. So, are you a girl?” the butcher’s son had asked smugly. Luhan punches him in the gut, with all the strength his weak nine-year old arm could muster.

After that he starts to hide the star, covering it up with a piece of red cloth and tying it around his wrist, away from anyone’s sight.

It’s not until he’s seventeen that he fully learns what the mark means, and is totally confused. The mark, if what the new guy said is true, means that he’s destined to marry a prince.

“That doesn’t make sense Xing. Firstly, I’m a boy, not a girl. Secondly, that would be a really weird way to decide marriage” Luhan voices his thoughts, rubbing his chin in contemplation. “How do you know that stuff, anyways?”

Yixing arrived at the village a month ago, bringing all his belongings in a small bag. The boy immediately got a job at Victoria’s bakery, what with his amazing talent in cooking. Luhan wonders how he got so good at baking, all he knew what to cook was, well, nothing. After assessing the boy as trustable, he decided to tell him about his mark. But even though he’s so open, Yixing is not. Countless times has Luhan asked about his past, all to no avail, as the boy doesn’t tell him anything, only vague answers.

It’s the same this time. 

“It’s common knowledge from where I come from. If a girl is born with a star on her wrist, then that immediately makes them destined to marry a prince in the future”

“But I’m a boy?” Luhan questions. Does that mean he gets to marry a princess maybe?

Yixing frowns. “That’s what I find strange too.”

Luhan looks at his wrist, where the shape of a star is curved onto his skin, like a huge brown mole but with a weird ass shape. He’s not great at describing things, but what he just meant was that he still thinks the mark is beautiful, even though he’s conflicted about its meaning.

Whatever. “Let’s not think about it too much, it’s probably nothing” Luhan says, trying to make Yixing stop frowning. “You coming today, right?”

At this, the boy finally changes his face, and nods at the question. “Of course. I promised." 

“Great, because I was panicky you’d drop me”

Luhan doesn’t have a job. But what he does have is passion, he guesses. He’s loved the streets since he was very young, and that didn’t decrease as he grew up. He starts to develop an interest in street artists as he travels the streets on the daily, and it’s that what makes him go most days to the center of the city to perform in front of an audience.

He’s not from a wealthy family, so it’s not like he can get admitted as an actor in a theatre. He tries however, to show his art whenever he can. And yes, maybe the passersby ignore him. Yes, maybe he’s not that great of an actor. And yes, he isn’t the best at singing. But the times when one or two people stop in their tracks and look at Luhan’s hard work, it makes the embarrassment all worth it. When he hears Yixing can dance, he immediately thinks of including him on one of his acts. He’s always gone solo, but it doesn’t hurt to try something different. 

\---

Xiumin doesn’t remember at all. Doesn’t remember anything but the day he woke up at the hospital, his head injured and his arm in a cast. The lady tending him asks him his name, he remembers, and that’s when he realizes he doesn’t know it. She asks him about his parents, and again, he doesn’t know. Why doesn’t he know?

The doctors allow him to stay at the hospital for two days, but on the third they ask him to leave, as they couldn’t provide him with services if he didn’t have any documentation on him.

He gets accepted at an orphanage, and it’s there where he gets a new name. It wasn’t a great environment, the sadness of abandoned kids and the strictness of the household created a tense atmosphere, but it becomes Xiumin’s reality.

The first friend he makes is a boy named Hakyeon, who ended up in the orphanage because his parents died. He remembers that a thought passed through his brain at that moment _. Did my parents die too? Are they outside there, somewhere?_ It’s also Hakyeon that gives him a new name, after seeing the only possession he had, a pendant of two crossed swords, hanging from the chain around his neck _. If you don’t have a name, then I’ll call you Xiumin, cause that thing you have looks like an X._

Now Xiumin is nineteen (or that’s the age he guesses he is, because he actually never knew when he was born) and Hakyeon is twenty-one. Neither of them ever got adopted as children, and now as adults, they have to leave the place they’ve associated as home for so many years. Xiumin plans to leave and go to the south, start a new life and search the meaning for his pendant. However, Hakyeon decides to stay. He decides to work on the orphanage.

“Are you sure you want to stay here?” he asks Hakyeon, but the boy only nods.

“I want to help these kids”

They part ways in the afternoon, Xiumin towards the train station and Hakyeon towards the orphanage house.

\----

 

With the help of Yixing, Luhan becomes what he wanted to be. He becomes a star, his performances appreciated to the extent that he sometimes has a little stage built for him in the middle of the streets. It’s not exactly a theatre, but it’s enough for him. Including Yixing in his acts incredibly increased their audience, Luhan singing and the boy dancing. He was finally able to bring money to his house, helping his mother financially.

But he doesn’t want to be stuck in one place, the reason why he liked the streets so much was because he loved the feeling of freedom they gave him. So, when he turns twenty-one, he makes the decision to leave the city he grew up in. His mother is in tears, hugging him and telling him she’ll miss him. He kisses her on the forehead and hugs her back, one last time.

He told Yixing his plans, but either way, He’s still surprised when the younger boy sits next to him in the train wagon. Luhan hadn’t expected Yixing to come with him, not when Victoria had just offered him to be a co-owner of the bakery shop.

“Why are you here? I thought you wanted a stable life, y’know, with Victoria’s bakery and all” he asks as the boy takes something out of his case.

“You’re the only friend I have in the city. Besides, I’m still curious about your mark” Yixing replies as he puts his case back on the floor, the book he took out in hand.

“Are you sure you wanna do this? You were pretty hyped when you told me Victoria offered you the position of co-owner”

“I was. But I have a duty, one that’s heavier than working at the bakery or being your partner. It’s time I confront my past” the boy says as he starts reading. Luhan wonders what exactly was so important about the past.

\----

 “Yo, have you heard?” Baekhyun says as he flops down on the couch of Chanyeol’s living room

“Heard what, Byun?” Kyungsoo appears with Chanyeol from the kitchen, carrying their meal for the night towards the dining table.

“I was walking them streets in the afternoon, but not this dumps. I was goin through the wealthy neighborhoods, and I heard something very interesting, pals”

“Go to the point” Kyungsoo says.

“Well, then" the boy pauses and sits up "I think that Royal family, Kim? Is looking for their long-lost brother”

"And?"

"The price is hugee" Baekhyun widens his eyes "literally more money that we've ever gained from conning"

Chanyeol sets the plates on the table, and Kyungsoo helps him out with the knives and forks.

"How much are we talking about?" The tallest amongst them asks.

"Grands. We could be rich, each one of us, with the recompense money they give"

Chanyeol seems to start playing around with the idea, but Kyungsoo doesn’t budge. It’s too risky. One thing is conning old ladies and newlyweds, and another is conning a family with royal blood running through their veins.

"I don’t think it’s a wise idea. If we get caught with this farce, it’s not gonna be easy to escape."

"But consider the pros-"

"Baekhyun, they're people with power" Kyungsoo finishes setting the table and looks at the older boy's direction. "I'm not helping if you two go through with this"

Chanyeol seems like he wants to say something, but Kyungsoo knows he won’t. The taller has always been greedy, and there’s no way he would give up such a promising job.

The only thing Chanyeol does is look at him with a pout. Kyungsoo doesn't change his mind though. He kisses the boy in the cheek and starts eating the lasagna they made.

\----

Baekhyun and Chanyeol get to work, while Kyungsoo withdraws himself from their activities, focusing on his carpenter job.

Chanyeol doesn’t like this, it unsettles his stomach thinking that Kyungsoo thinks what he’s doing is wrong, but he really wants that recompense money. Not because he’s money obsessed, but because with that money they could move in together, he could buy them a house in a nicer district, and leave the slumps they live in. He’s sure the younger boy thinks he’s just doing this for self-interest, but no, he’s doing it with their relationship in mind.

“Where should we spread the news?” Baekhyn asks as he picks on his fingernails, inspecting them afterwards.

“The underground district.”

“Alrighty then, let’s begin with the castings”

\----

 

Luhan doesn’t expect Yixing to be the one to lead the way. But apparently, the boy knows the city already.

“How?” Luhan questions, wondering what else does the boy know “You need to start telling me stuff, stuff like the fact that you were born here”

Yixing smirks “It doesn’t affect you in anyway”.

Luhan wants to punch him. The boy only opened his mouth after Luhan had already paid the rent of a room for a month. If he knew the boy had a place to stay, he wouldn’t have wasted money unnecessarily to get an extra bed too. Heck, he wouldn’t have wasted money on accommodations, preferring to stay wherever Yixing was going to stay.

“Also, this is not where I was born. That much, I can tell you.” The boy says as they walk down the streets, Luhan still with his hands on his face, moaning exasperatingly. “I just stayed here for a while before going to your town”

They finally reach the destination Yixing had led them to, as Luhan is about to open his mouth again. “Here we are.” The boy says, looking at the woodshop in front of them. “I didn’t tell you because I didn’t know if he’d accept you too”

“Are you sure it’s not because you wanted to make a fool outta myself?”

Yixing laughs. “Well. That too.”

\---

Kyungsoo is nothing but overjoyed when the door opens and Yixing comes through it

“Hi” the boy says and Kyungsoo immediately leaves the counter and goes for a hug. It’s been ages since he’s seen Yixing. The boy had left the city years ago, and he hadn’t heard any news of him until, well, until now.

“It’s good so see you again” Kyungsoo smiles, and then notices his friend came with company. “Who’s this?”

Yixing pats the boy on the back and slings an arm around his shoulders. “This is Luhan, he’s my friend from the place I went to”

Luhan introduces himself, shaking Kyungsoo’s hand, and then looking at Yixing, who looks back at him. It’s obvious that they’re about to ask for a favor, as the two boys looked tense and Luhan was avoiding Kyungsoo’s eyes.

“You two can stay at my place, no worries”

Bingo. Luhan muttered a yes and thanked Kyungsoo, Yixing letting out a breath of relief.

 

\----

It’s difficult to get a job in the new city he’s in, but Xiumin tries anyways. After a week of being jobless and his money almost disappearing, he manages to get hired as a waiter at a bar in the underground district. It’s not optimal, but it’ll be enough to get him through while he searches about his identity.

\----

Luhan’s star starts to sting, like an insect is constantly biting at his skin, leaving it red and irritated. It hurts a bit, but not so much that he can’t live with it. He decides to stay quiet about it, not wanting to cause unnecessary problems and worry Yixing, not when Kyungsoo’s joined them on their street performances, his voice accompanying Luhan and Yixing dancing, not when everything is going so well.

\----

They’re about to give up. No one that’s showed up for casting has had a strong resemblance to Prince Minseok, and Baekhyun is getting stressed. Chanyeol isn’t better, a sigh leaving his mouth as the next person that walks through the door looks nothing like the picture they have of the lost prince

The castings’ go horrible that night too, so they decide to go and get drinks at the closest bar.

“Why is finding a look alike so difficult? Ugh, I wanna call it quits” Baekhyun complains as they sit down on a table.

“You suggested it, so we can’t call it quits. Not when words gone around, okay?” It’s not like Chanyeol doesn’t want to give up too, he wants to. But their reputation could crumble if they don’t manage to find that doppelganger, he knows all their competition are keeping a close watch on them, waiting till they screw up to start rising themselves. Even though he wants to see Kyungsoo more than twice a week, he won’t because this is his job and he needs to accomplish it.

When they see the waiter that brings them their drinks, it’s almost untrue. Both Baekhyun and Chanyeol have the same thought: he looks like the lost prince.

The waiter is about to leave when Baekhyun grabs his sleeve. “Wait. Wait a minute”

The boy looks at them with confusion, but stays on place. Baekhyun has a huge smile. Jackpot. They found someone, finally for Jesus sake.

\----

Xiumin can’t believe it when the two men in the bar tell him he’s a lost prince. _You look so much like Prince Minseok. Did you know they’re searching for you?_ At first, he doesn’t believe them, but then they show him a picture of ‘himself’ and it’s like looking in a mirror, but seeing a younger version of himself.

He followed them after his shift ended, the idea still not getting into his brain. How could he be a prince? He’s just an orphan. It’s foolish to think that his family was someone so important. If that was the case, then they would have looked for him sooner, right?

But the longer he looks at the picture, the more and more he begins to believe them.

"Look, Xiumin, right?" Xiumin nods, and Baekhyun continues " we don’t actually know if you're the lost prince. But you could be, man" he puts a hand on his shoulder, reassuringly "We're just tryna help"

If he wasn’t an orphan, Xiumin wouldn’t believe them at all. But he doesn’t know where he comes from, and maybe this could be the answer to who he is, something he's been struggling with for his whole life.

They tell him he needs to remember his past first, overcome his amnesia.

"The Kim brother's will throw a ball at the start of the next month, in their mansion. We'll present them to you, but first we have to work on your memories"

Would Hakyeon believe what he's found out? Would he believe that he's a prince? Because Xiumin (Minseok?) Doesn’t.

\---

Sehun's looking for Jongin. The youngest brother had burst out from the mansion over an hour ago, after another fraud comes and tries to get the price money.

He knows he can’t be too far off, as the prince doesn’t know the city as Sehun does. The only place that comes to mind is the house of the cat lady. And he's right.

When Taeyeon opens her door, there he is, playing with the cat on the floor.

"Kai"

Junmyeon's told him to address them with different names when they're in public, so no one knows they're the Kim family when it's not needed.

The boy looks up at Sehun as he caresses the cat's ears, the animal purring. "What"

"You can’t storm out of the house like that. Suho's worried."

Taeyeon offers them tea, but Sehun refuses politely, telling her they need to go back immediately. Jongin gives the cat a little peck and follows him, although reluctantly.

As soon as they're on the streets, Sehun holds the prince's hand. Jongin squeezes it tight.

"I just. I dont know. I got tired of getting my hopes up. And I was so offended, so mad, that those people were pretending to be Minseok" Jongin mutters, playing with Sehun's hand " I had to get out or I was going to punch every other imitation that appeared in front of me"

"I get it" Sehun does. He completely gets it. "This whole thing is tiring for everybody. Prince Junmyeon might not show it, but he's hurting a lot right now. Both your older brothers are, you're not alone"

\----

This time, Luhan dances with him, while Kyungsoo sings for them. Yixing knows the older boy doesn’t think he's a great dancer, but everytime they've danced together he dances on par with Yixing. It’s going smoothly, they’ve gathered a good number of onlookers. Then it happens. Yixing catches the eyes of a stranger and almost stops breathing.

It looks like..., it can’t be...

"Dude, what are you doing?" Luhan whispers to him, and he realises he's stopped dancing. The people start to disperse, Luhan and Kyungsoo ask him what’s wrong, but he’s still looking at the guy, wondering if this is actually it.

Yixing can tell the stranger feels uncomfortable with his stare. It could be Minseok. It could be the prince, right? Yixing hasn’t heard about the Kims ever since that day the Red Force separated them, the day he got the scar on his stomach. What would the prince do on the streets? He doesn’t know. But then, the boy doesn’t seem to be inspecting him like Yixing’s doing. If he was the prince he’d recognize him, right?

“What’s going on?” This time it’s Kyungsoo, but Yixing doesn’t answer, he’s already walking towards the stranger.

\---

“What’s your name” the street performer asks, and Xiumin can’t open his mouth. It was weird at first, when the guy stopped dancing and stared at him. He should have started walking as soon as that happened, but for some reason he didn’t move an inch, looking back at the stranger, until this one approached him. He can’t really tell why, but he feels like he’s seen those eyes somewhere before.

“I’m…Xiumin” he answers, hesitating at first because Xiumin isn’t his real name now. But the strangers don’t need to know that “Why do you ask?”

The boy ignores his question and asks another one instead “What’s your current age?”

In that moment, the other two performers come to their friend’s side. They’re whispering to each other, asking the boy what was he doing.

“I’m nineteen” Minseok doesn’t know what he expected, but it definitely wasn’t for the guy’s expression to drop and become somber.

“Ignore Yixing here. I’m sure he ate something that messed up his stomach. Right, Xing?” the other boy that had been dancing says, smiling nervously and clearly trying to solve the situation. “I apologize on his behalf. I’m Luhan, by the way”

“It’s fine” he replies. “I’m Xiumin”

Luhan pats Yixing’s back “Are you hungry? Cause I am. We could go have dinner together”

“You don’t have to-”

“We absolutely do. This guy here” Luhan points at Yixing “made you feel uncomfy. And we can’t have our audience be anxious around us, so really. It’s our treat”

\----

Luhan actually doesn’t expect the boy to accept the offer. He’d made it to solve the awkwardness that had grown between Yixing and him, and he’d insisted on it to make his intentions seem genuine.

But then the Xiumin guy nods his head. _Okay, I’m hungry so._ He knows neither Kyungsoo or Yixing will help him pay for the guy’s meal, so that means he’ll have to waste the little money he has for the dude’s dinner.

Shit.

Apparently, he says that out loud, because now everyone is looking at him.

“Sorry, uh. My wrist hurts” he quickly comes up with an excuse, so as not to appear rude to the stranger.

This sparks Yixing’s interest, who is immediately inspecting the wrist covered with red cloth, holding it close to his face. He tries to take his hand out of his friend’s grip, but to no avail. When did Yixing get so strong?

“You have a wound on your wrist?” Kyungsoo asks, while Xiumin just stands there looking at them with confusion.

“Something like that” he replies, getting frustrated with Yixing’s attitude “Could you release me, for god sake?”

“When did it start hurting?” Yixing asks. Luhan didn’t want to answer him, thinking his behavior today was becoming incredibly annoying, but he knows his friend is doing it with his best intentions, so he answers with a sigh.

“Like, a day or two after we came into this city. Now can you drop my arm, please?”

The walk towards the restaurant is incredibly awkward. Yixing seems to be deep in his thoughts, Kyungsoo looks tired and the Xiumin guy is just plain quiet.

\---

Yixing got his hopes up thinking that boy could be the prince. Xiumin. Not Minseok. Xiumin was nineteen, while the real prince would be twenty-one at the moment.

There’s also Luhan, who’s mark has been hurting for a while now. What does it mean? It doesn’t make sense. All he remembers learning was that a girl’s mark starts stinging when she’s close to her destined prince. But, nothing else. And he doesn’t know how this applies to Luhan, who isn’t a girl at all. Not to mention they’re in a city where there’s no royal families.

“What’s going on” he says to himself.

\-----

Xiumin becomes close with the street performers. Or rather, with two of the street performers, as it appeared Yixing had an issue with him.

Luhan had the same age as Hakyeon, and loved to joke around. Kyungsoo was quieter, not really a talker, but Xiumin not being a talker himself, understands the boy pretty well. But amongst the two, he certainly feels closer to the oldest boy. Luhan and him just connected, their personalities complimenting each other’s. He doesn’t really know how to explain what he feels, but it’s a happy feeling, that he can recognize.

One day, they’re talking in Kyungsoo’s apartment, and their hands touch by accident. A whole second passes before Luhan pulls his hand away, and Xiumin just stays there with his heart beating faster than before.

He’s never liked someone before, but he’s sure this must be the feeling.

\---

Surprisingly, Luhan ends up linking Xiumin a lot. They start hanging out together and sometimes with Kyungsoo, but not with Yixing, because every time the boy was close to Xiumin it became really awkward. It was like he was expecting something from the other boy, but got disappointed when he didn’t receive it.

The boy was amazing, they got along incredibly well, and also incredibly fast. Is as if he’s known him his whole life. In the short span of a few weeks, he feels closer to the boy than to any other of his friends. It’s weird, if you think about it. It’s incredibly strange. It’s not that Luhan takes time making friends, but it’s the fact that he’s started to feel infatuation for the boy along the way.

\----

Already, he’s learned a lot about his past. His brothers’ names, how the Red force killed his parents and destroyed his home, how only him and his brothers managed to escape and when they got separated. It made sense actually, in the hospital they’d told him he was found passed out in the train station, and the story Baekhyun told him was that the princes fled by jumping on a train.

After a few sessions, he chooses to show them his pendant, but the two don’t provide him any information.

"Sorry dude. Don’t know the meaning of it” Chanyeol says, rubbing his neck.

\---

His wrist begins to burn. It’s so intense that he can’t sleep at all. He doesn’t know what to do. He doesn’t want to go to Yixing because the boy will think something is wrong, but it really hurts. So, he calls his name, but the one to come to him is Kyungsoo.

“Sorry, he’s showering-” Kyungsoo stops when he notices the state Luhan’s in. He feels hot all over, sweat dampening his clothes and he’s taken the red cloth from his wrist, breathing heavily. “What’s going on with you? Are you okay?" 

“Call Yixing please. Tell him it’s about the star.” 

“Okay. Please don’t die in my house though” Kyungsoo replies, clearly worried but trying to alleviate the tension.

\---

“You told me it didn’t hurt anymore” Yixing accuses, putting his wrist in cold water. “If you’d told me sooner it would be less intense”

“Sorry, didn’t wanna worry you.” Luhan replies hissing as the cold water made contact with his hot wrist. “Besides, you’ve been outta it lately.”

“The reactions you’re having shouldn’t be happening. There’s no princes around here, so it’s insane that you’re having a neglected bonding ritual” Yixing says, mostly to himself, as he tends Luhan’s star.

“Whoa, whoa. Bonding ritual? Princes? I think you’re getting sick too”

“I’m being totally serious, Luhan”

This is ridiculous. Why couldn’t he say it was a disease, an infection or something remotely realistic, instead of continuing the nonsense he told him back when he was seventeen. “How do you even kn-”

“I know because I was a servant at a royal household, okay?” Yixing raises his voice, interrupting him.

“Bullshit.”

“I was a servant for the Kim family, and I know about the stars because the King married the queen because of that mark.”

Impossible. What Yixing was saying was impossible. He was a servant for the Kim family, that one who’s castle got overthrown by the Red Force? Impossible. Supposedly all servants were killed that day, and if what Luhan had heard was right, then it doesn’t make sense, because Yixing was alive “I don’t believe you”

“I don’t need you to believe me. I understand. It’s overwhelming.” Yixing says. His wrist is still in the water, now that Luhan realizes. “But please, please just tell me what people you’ve hanged out with since we got here”

“Fine” Sometimes the younger boy reminded him of his mom. “Only like, you, Kyungsoo and Xiumin. I don’t have many friends, alright?”

“It has to be then…, I was right, he has to be prince Minseok” Yixing mutters, drying his wrist with a towel. “But why did he lie about his name and age? Why didn’t he recognize me?”

There’s a knock in the bathroom’s door, and Kyungsoo enters.

“I’m sorry to overhear. But, are you implying that Xiumin is the lost prince?”

Yixing nods. “I think so. It’s the only explanation to why Luhan’s reacting like this.”

“Well okay. Let’s say you’re right. Then, how do I get the star to stop hurting?” Luhan thinks this has become a comedy now. Xiumin a prince? Well, in actuality, he could picture that. But still.

“With a kiss. The queen’s mark stopped stinging the day of her wedding, when the king kissed her for the first time”

“I’ll go bring Xiumin” Kyungsoo says and heads out

“Me, kiss Xiumin?” Luhan is blushing, but he hopes Yixing thinks it’s because of the star “What a dumb idea.”

“Stop pretending like you don’t like him _like that_. The bonding ritual wouldn’t have happened if you and Xiumin didn’t like each other” the boy says, pitying but at the same time laughing at Luhan’s state.

\---

When Kyungsoo gets to Xiumin’s place, he’s surprised to see Chanyeol and Baekhyun inside of the boy’s apartment. Then it clicks.

He laughs for a solid minute, taking everyone off guard. Xiumin asks him if he’s okay, Chanyeol asks him how did he get here and Baekhyun asks if they knew each other.

When he manages to calm himself, and stop laughing, he finally speaks. “Prince Minseok” the boys all gasp in unison, and it’s pretty funny, actually. “Please follow me to my house”

\---

“You’re telling me that this is the real- the real lost prince?” Baekhyun whispers in Kyungsoo’s ear, as to not have Minseok hear them.

“Yeah.”

“Holy shit." 

\---

When they arrive at Kyungsoo’s flat, Yixing opens the door and leads them to the living room.

“You knew I was the prince?” Minseok asks

“I had my suspicions, but then you told me a different name and a different age and it threw me off” Yixing replied, smiling. “But why didn’t you remember me?”

Xiumin (Minseok?) looks down “I have amnesia. It’s not your fault.”

Yixing tells him not to worry. _We can catch up later_. They leave him alone in the apartment, telling him what he has to do.

More shocking than finding out he’s a prince, is the news that him and Luhan are meant to be by some weird star spell. He’s nervous, but either way, he still heads inside the bathroom.

\----

When he sees Xiumin, he wants to die of embarrassment. He can’t believe his friends actually went to bring the boy. God. The person that he least wanted to see him in such a state was Xiumin.

 "I was told I need to kiss you” the boy deadpans and Luhan becomes a red tomato. Why was Xiumin so straight forward?

“Did Yixing tell you that? Ignore him, he’s crazy” Luhan tries to laugh, but he can’t without gasping. It’s like the star is going on overdrive, making it difficult to breath, his skin completely sensitive.

“I don’t think so.” Xiumin says as he gets closer to Luhan, who’s sitting in the toilet’s lid. “Luhan, I’m a prince”

Tsk “If you’re…you’re..” why couldn’t he breath? God “you’re a prince, then I’m a princess.”

Xiumin smirks. “Maybe”

He gets closer, leaning his face slowly, and Luhan can’t move. He’s entirely exposed, and blushing like crazy.

“Well, then, do it already!” he screams, when Xiumin is still not close enough to his face “You’re acting all though and saying you’ll kiss me, but you’re not actually doin-”

Soft lips press against his own, and the effect is instant. It last less than a second, but it appeared to be enough to soothe his wrist. When he looks at it, the star is no longer the brown-mole color it used to be. Instead, it now shines silver, like the moon.

“I still can’t believe you’re actually a prince” Luhan complains. Does this actually make him a princess?

“You’re cute when you pout” Minseok says as he kisses his nose.

Luhan totally doesn’t blush.

\---

Chanyeol and Baekhyun, at the end, actually end up helping the Kim family. When the brother’s see Minseok, they immediately go and crush him with a hug.

Minseok presents them to Luhan, his, well, his star. Jongdae and him get along incredibly well, and it’s nice to have finally found his place on earth.

Yixing answers the questions about his pendant. _I gave it to you on your tenth birthday_.

 

And slowly, but surely, some memories come back to him. However, he didn’t mind remembering the past. Now he wanted to remember the present.

 

**Author's Note:**

> I hope it was fine. This is the first Fest I've taken part on, and I'm sorry if I caused inconveniences to the moderators for handing this outta the deadline.
> 
> My first language ain't english, so sorry if the flow is stiff or something.


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